Lighting your candles should be an experience - from the first strike of the match to the very last burn .
So how do you get this - well, 150 is here to give you our top four tips to making sure you get the most out of your candle.
1. First Burn
Tunnelling: Have you ever lit a candle and within a day or two you have what resembles a tunnel through the wax? Well, this is one of the main bug bearers among people who love to light candles. But, trust us - this is totally avoidable. The first burn of your candle is the most important - for want of a better expression it is a commitment and it requires patience.
With that first burn, it is so important that you get a full wax pool before you quench the candle. Most candles will reach this stage within two hours, but this can vary depending on the wax, wick and the size of the vessel.
Make sure that you allow the candle wax to reach the edge of the vessel. This then makes sure you have 'set the candle memory' and from that point your candle should perform well for all burns .
2. Burn Time
We recommend lighting your candle for no longer than four hours, and here's why.
Mushrooming: If you burn your candle for too long the wick can get a collection of carbon at the top - for all intents and purposes it looks like a mushroom and this will impact the vessel. You will get a build up of this on the vessel and it will impact the look of the vessel.
This 'mushroom' could fall off if not trimmed and land in the wax - this impacts the quality of the next burn and it also stains your wax and effects the 'look' of your candle. This will vary depending on the quality and make of the candle. 150 candles really like a 4 hour burn!!
Finally, each candle will come with a set of care instructions and health and safety guidelines (you can find 150 candle guidelines on the underneath of your candle vessel) and it is important that you would follow these to ensure you get the best burn and scent quality.
3. Protect the Candle
How do you do this? Well, when we first open a candle we are tempted to discard the lid or the covering that accompanies our candle. This is an error. If you keep your lid/covering it allows you to protect the candle from dust and dirt which can impact the quality of the burn and the scent from your candle. Replace once the candle has been extinguished and is solid again.
4. Wick Trimming
It is very important to trim your wick so that you get the best burn and scent from your candle. Once your candle has been extinguished and has solidified, you can now trim your wick. Whether you have a cotton wick or you have a wooden wick ( certainly our wick of choice at 150) you need to trim this wick.
If you do not trim your wick then the flame is going to be too high and this will create a sooty/black smoke that will settle on the inside of your candle vessel, the wick will eventually break and fall into your lovely creamy wax pool - not what we want to happen.
150 Quick Tip: Straight from the workshop in Tralee Co Kerry - the wick should be just long enough to allow you to relight it for the next burn. You can of course use a household scissors to cut the wick, or use your fingers to trim the wooden wick, but our choice is to add a stylish wick to your candle accessories which will make wick trimming so easy and quick.
